Signs of Jesus Christ's Second Coming

"Behold the fig tree." Luke 21:29.

     One of the most solemn and yet most glorious truths revealed in the Bible is that of Christ's second coming to complete the great work of redemption. To God's pilgrim people, so long left to sojourn in "the region and shadow of death," a precious, joy-inspiring hope is given in the promise of His appearing, who is "the resurrection and the life," to "bring home again His banished." The doctrine of the second advent is the very keynote of the Sacred Scriptures. From the day when the first pair turned their sorrowing steps from Eden, the children of faith have waited the coming of the Promised One to break the destroyer's power and bring them again to the lost Paradise.

     When the Saviour was about to be separated from His disciples, He comforted them in their sorrow with the assurance that He would come again: "Let not your heart be troubled. . . . In My Father's house are many mansions. . . . I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself." John 14:1-3. "The Son of man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him." "Then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory: and before Him shall be gathered all nations." Matthew 25:31, 32.

     The angels who lingered upon Olivet after Christ's ascension repeated to the disciples the promise of His return: "This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven." Acts 1:11. And the apostle Paul, speaking by the Spirit of Inspiration, testified: "The Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the Archangel, and with the trump of God." 1 Thessalonians 4:16. Says the prophet of Patmos: "Behold, He cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see Him." Revelation 1:7. 

     Satan is not permitted to exactly counterfeit the manner of Christ's advent. The Saviour has warned His people against deception upon this point, and has clearly foretold the manner of His second coming. "There shall arise false christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. . . . Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, He is in the desert; go not forth; behold, He is in the secret chambers; believe it not. For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be." Matthew 24:24-27, 31. This coming there is no possibility of exactly counterfeiting. It will be universally and simultaneously known, and witnessed by the whole world.

     The scriptures say of Jesus’ second coming: "Of that day and hour knoweth no man, no not the angels of heaven, but My Father only." Matthew 24:36.

     The disciples had asked the question: "What shall be the sign of Thy coming, and of the end of the world?" Jesus gave them signs, and said: "When ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors." Matthew 24:3, 33. One saying of the Saviour must not be made to destroy another. Though no man knoweth the exact day nor the exact hour of His coming, we are instructed and required to know when it is near. We are further taught that to disregard His warning, and refuse or neglect to know when His advent is near, will be as fatal for us as it was for those who lived in the days of Noah not to know when the flood was coming.

     And the parable in the same chapter, contrasting the faithful and the unfaithful servant, and giving the doom of him who said in his heart, "My Lord delayeth His coming," shows in what light Christ will regard and reward those whom He finds watching, and teaching His coming, contrasted with those denying it. "Watch therefore," He says. "Blessed is that servant, whom his Lord when He cometh shall find so doing." Matthew 24:42, 46. "If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee." Revelation 3:3.

     Paul speaks of a class to whom the Lord's appearing will come unawares. "The day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, . . . and they shall not escape." But he adds, to those who have given heed to the Saviour's warning: "Ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness." 1 Thessalonians 5:2-5.

     Christ has bidden His people watch for the signs of His second advent and rejoice as they behold the tokens of their coming King. "When these things begin to come to pass," He said, "then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh." He points His followers to the budding trees of spring, and says: "Behold the fig tree, and all the trees; when they now shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand. So likewise ye, when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand." Luke 21:28-31.

     But as the spirit of humility and devotion in the church has given place to pride and formalism, love for Christ and faith in His coming has grown cold. Absorbed in worldliness and pleasure seeking, the professed people of God are blinded to the Saviour's instructions concerning the signs of His appearing. The doctrine of the second advent has been neglected; the scriptures relating to it are obscured by misinterpretation, until it is, to a great extent, ignored and forgotten. Especially is this the case in the churches of America. The freedom and comfort enjoyed by all classes of society, the ambitious desire for wealth and luxury, begetting an absorbing devotion to money-making, the eager rush for popularity and power, which seem to be within the reach of all, lead men to center their interests and hopes on the things of this life, and to put far in the future that solemn day when the present order of things shall pass away. 

     When the Saviour pointed out to His followers the signs of His return, He foretold the state of backsliding that would exist just prior to His second advent. As in the days of Noah, there would be excesses -- corrupt appetites and intemperence, with the activity and stir of worldly business and pleasure seeking. Eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, building, marrying, and giving in marriage would be conducted with forgetfulness of God and the future eternal life offered to the overcomer {Revelation 2:7}. For those living at this time, Christ's admonition is: "Take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting {gluttony; debauchery}, and drunkenness, and cares of this life {love of the world}, and so that day come upon you unawares." "Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things {worldy pleasures and pursuits} that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man." Luke 21:34, 36. 

     The condition of the church at this time is pointed out in the Saviour's words in the Revelation: "Thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead." And to those who refuse to arouse from their careless security, the solemn warning is addressed: "If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee." Revelation 3:1, 3.


To read more of this relevant and insightful book, The Great Controversy, please visit: www.EverlastingGospelTruths.blogspot.com/p/Online-Books.html

The Divine Shepherd

The Divine Shepherd

This article is based on John 10:1-30.

“I am the Good Shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.” “I am the Good Shepherd, and know My sheep, and am known of Mine. As the Father knoweth Me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down My life for the sheep.”

Again Jesus found access to the minds of His hearers by the pathway of their familiar associations. He had likened the Spirit’s influence to the cool, refreshing water. He had represented Himself as the light, the source of life and gladness to nature and to man. Now in a beautiful pastoral picture He represents His relation to those that believe on Him. No picture was more familiar to His hearers than this, and Christ’s words linked it forever with Himself. Never could the disciples look on the shepherds tending their flocks without recalling the Saviour’s lesson. They would see Christ in each faithful shepherd. They would see themselves in each helpless and dependent flock.

This figure the prophet Isaiah had applied to the Messiah’s mission, in the comforting words, “O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God! ... He shall feed His flock like a shepherd: He shall gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom.” Isaiah 40:9-11. David had sung, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” Psalm 23:1. And the Holy Spirit through Ezekiel had declared: “I will set up one Shepherd over them, and He shall feed them.” “I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick.” “And I will make with them a covenant of peace.” “And they shall no more be a prey to the heathen; ... but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid.” Ezekiel 34:23, 16, 25, 28.

Christ applied these prophecies to Himself, and He showed the contrast between His own character and that of the leaders in Israel. The Pharisees had just driven one from the fold, because he dared to bear witness to the power of Christ. They had cut off a soul whom the True Shepherd was drawing to Himself. In this they had shown themselves ignorant of the work committed to them, and unworthy of their trust as shepherds of the flock. Jesus now set before them the contrast between them and the Good Shepherd, and He pointed to Himself as the real keeper of the Lord’s flock. Before doing this, however, He speaks of Himself under another figure.

He said, “He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.” The Pharisees did not discern that these words were spoken against them. When they reasoned in their hearts as to the meaning, Jesus told them plainly, “I am the door: by Me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”

Christ is the door to the fold of God. Through this door all His children, from the earliest times, have found entrance. In Jesus, as shown in types, as shadowed in symbols, as manifested in the revelation of the prophets, as unveiled in the lessons given to His disciples, and in the miracles wrought for the sons of men, they have beheld “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29), and through Him they are brought within the fold of His grace. Many have come presenting other objects for the faith of the world; ceremonies and systems have been devised by which men hope to receive justification and peace with God, and thus find entrance to His fold. But the only door is Christ, and all who have interposed something to take the place of Christ, all who have tried to enter the fold in some other way, are thieves and robbers.

The Pharisees had not entered by the door. They had climbed into the fold by another way than Christ, and they were not fulfilling the work of the true shepherd. The priests and rulers, the scribes and Pharisees, destroyed the living pastures, and defiled the wellsprings of the water of life. Faithfully do the words of inspiration describe those false shepherds: “The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought again that which was driven away; ... but with force and with cruelty have ye ruled them.” Ezekiel 34:4.

In all ages, philosophers and teachers have been presenting to the world theories by which to satisfy the soul’s need. Every heathen nation has had its great teachers and religious systems offering some other means of redemption than Christ, turning the eyes of men away from the Father’s face, and filling their hearts with fear of Him who has given them only blessing. The trend of their work is to rob God of that which is His own, both by creation and by redemption. And these false teachers rob man as well. Millions of human beings are bound down under false religions, in the bondage of slavish fear, of stolid indifference, toiling like beasts of burden, bereft of hope or joy or aspiration here, and with only a dull fear of the hereafter. It is the gospel of the grace of God alone that can uplift the soul. The contemplation of the love of God manifested in His Son will stir the heart and arouse the powers of the soul as nothing else can. Christ came that He might re-create the image of God in man; and whoever turns men away from Christ is turning them away from the source of true development; he is defrauding them of the hope and purpose and glory of life. He is a thief and a robber.

“He that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.” Christ is both the door and the shepherd. He enters in by Himself. It is through His own sacrifice that He becomes the shepherd of the sheep. “To Him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear His voice: and He calleth His own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when He putteth forth His own sheep, He goeth before them, and the sheep follow Him: for they know His voice.”

Of all creatures the sheep is one of the most timid and helpless, and in the East the shepherd’s care for his flock is untiring and incessant. Anciently as now there was little security outside of the walled towns. Marauders from the roving border tribes, or beasts of prey from their hiding places in the rocks, lay in wait to plunder the flocks. The shepherd watched his charge, knowing that it was at the peril of his own life. Jacob, who kept the flocks of Laban in the pasture grounds of Haran, describing his own unwearied labor, said, “In the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night; and my sleep departed from mine eyes.” Genesis 31:40. And it was while guarding his father’s sheep that the boy David, single-handed, encountered the lion and the bear, and rescued from their teeth the stolen lamb.

As the shepherd leads his flock over the rocky hills, through forest and wild ravines, to grassy nooks by the riverside; as he watches them on the mountains through the lonely night, shielding from robbers, caring tenderly for the sickly and feeble, his life comes to be one with theirs. A strong and tender attachment unites him to the objects of his care. However large the flock, the shepherd knows every sheep. Every one has its name, and responds to the name at the shepherd’s call.

As an earthly shepherd knows his sheep, so does the divine Shepherd know His flock that are scattered throughout the world. “Ye My flock, the flock of My pasture, are men, and I am your God, saith the Lord God.” Jesus says, “I have called thee by thy name; thou art Mine.” “I have graven thee upon the palms of My hands.” Ezekiel 34:31; Isaiah 43:1; 49:16.

Jesus knows us individually, and is touched with the feeling of our infirmities. He knows us all by name. He knows the very house in which we live, the name of each occupant. He has at times given directions to His servants to go to a certain street in a certain city, to such a house, to find one of His sheep.

Every soul is as fully known to Jesus as if he were the only one for whom the Saviour died. The distress of every one touches His heart. The cry for aid reaches His ear. He came to draw all men unto Himself. He bids them, “Follow Me,” and His Spirit moves upon their hearts to draw them to come to Him. Many refuse to be drawn. Jesus knows who they are. He also knows who gladly hear His call, and are ready to come under His pastoral care. He says, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” He cares for each one as if there were not another on the face of the earth.
“He calleth His own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.... And the sheep follow Him: for they know His voice.” The Eastern shepherd does not drive his sheep. He depends not upon force or fear; but going before, he calls them. They know his voice, and obey the call. So does the Saviour-Shepherd with His sheep. The Scripture says, “Thou leddest Thy people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron.” Through the prophet, Jesus declares, “I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with loving-kindness have I drawn thee.” He compels none to follow Him. “I drew them,” He says, “with cords of a man, with bands of love.” Psalm 77:20; Jeremiah 31:3; Hosea 11:4.

It is not the fear of punishment, or the hope of everlasting reward, that leads the disciples of Christ to follow Him. They behold the Saviour’s matchless love, revealed throughout His pilgrimage on earth, from the manger of Bethlehem to Calvary’s cross, and the sight of Him attracts, it softens and subdues the soul. Love awakens in the heart of the beholders. They hear His voice, and they follow Him.

As the shepherd goes before his sheep, himself first encountering the perils of the way, so does Jesus with His people. “When He putteth forth His own sheep, He goeth before them.” The way to heaven is consecrated by the Saviour’s footprints. The path may be steep and rugged, but Jesus has traveled that way; His feet have pressed down the cruel thorns, to make the pathway easier for us. Every burden that we are called to bear He Himself has borne.

Though now He has ascended to the presence of God, and shares the throne of the universe, Jesus has lost none of His compassionate nature. Today the same tender, sympathizing heart is open to all the woes of humanity. Today the hand that was pierced is reached forth to bless more abundantly His people that are in the world. “And they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand.” The soul that has given himself to Christ is more precious in His sight than the whole world. The Saviour would have passed through the agony of Calvary that one might be saved in His kingdom. He will never abandon one for whom He has died. Unless His followers choose to leave Him, He will hold them fast.

Through all our trials we have a never-failing Helper. He does not leave us alone to struggle with temptation, to battle with evil, and be finally crushed with burdens and sorrow. Though now He is hidden from mortal sight, the ear of faith can hear His voice saying, Fear not; I am with you. “I am He that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive forevermore.” Revelation 1:18. I have endured your sorrows, experienced your struggles, encountered your temptations. I know your tears; I also have wept. The griefs that lie too deep to be breathed into any human ear, I know. Think not that you are desolate and forsaken. Though your pain touch no responsive chord in any heart on earth, look unto Me, and live. “The mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but My kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of My peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee.” Isaiah 54:10.

However much a shepherd may love his sheep, he loves his sons and daughters more. Jesus is not only our shepherd; He is our “everlasting Father.” And He says, “I know Mine own, and Mine own know Me, even as the Father knoweth Me, and I know the Father.” John 10:14, 15, R. V. What a statement is this!—the only-begotten Son, He who is in the bosom of the Father, He whom God has declared to be “the Man that is My fellow” (Zechariah 13:7),—the communion between Him and the eternal God is taken to represent the communion between Christ and His children on the earth!
Because we are the gift of His Father, and the reward of His work, Jesus loves us. He loves us as His children. Reader, He loves you. Heaven itself can bestow nothing greater, nothing better. Therefore trust.

Jesus thought upon the souls all over the earth who were misled by false shepherds. Those whom He longed to gather as the sheep of His pasture were scattered among wolves, and He said, “Other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear My voice; and they shall become one flock, one shepherd.” John 10:16, R. V.

“Therefore doth My Father love Me, because I lay down My life, that I might take it again.” That is, My Father has so loved you, that He even loves Me more for giving My life to redeem you. In becoming your substitute and surety, by surrendering My life, by taking your liabilities, your transgressions, I am endeared to My Father.

“I lay down My life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again.” While as a member of the human family He was mortal, as God He was the fountain of life for the world. He could have withstood the advances of death, and refused to come under its dominion; but voluntarily He laid down His life, that He might bring life and immortality to light. He bore the sin of the world, endured its curse, yielded up His life as a sacrifice, that men might not eternally die. “Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows.... He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” Isaiah 53:4-6.

"The Love of God Toward Us"

     "...He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love."  Ephesians 1:4.

     "Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;
     And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour."  Ephesians 5:1, 2.

     "And you hath He quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
     Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
     Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
     But God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us,
     Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved). ..." Ephesians 21-5.

     "...God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."  Romans 5:8.

     Jesus says, "...The Father Himself loveth you, because ye have loved Me, and have believed that I came out from God."  John 16:27.

     "Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew Him not.
     Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is.
     And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as He is pure.
     Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.
     And ye know that He was manifested to take away our sins; and in Him is no sin.
     Whosoever abideth in Him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen Him, neither known Him."  1 John 3:1-6.

     "Hereby perceive we the love of God, because He laid down His life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren."  1 John 3:16.

     "In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him.
     Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins."  1 John 4:9, 10.

     "By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep His commandments.
     For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments: and His commandments are not grievous.
     For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith."  1 John 5:2-4.

     "For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
     Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,
     That He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man;
     That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,
     May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;
     And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God."  Ephesians 3:14-19.

     Jesus says,  "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.
     Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me.
     To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with Me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with My Father in His throne."  Revelation 3:19-21.

     "Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God."  2 Corinthians 7:1.

Will You Listen to God's Loving Entreaties, and Turn Away From Your Sins?

The God whom we serve is long-suffering; “His compassions fail not.” Lamentations 3:22. Throughout the period of probationary time His Spirit is entreating men to accept the gift of life. “As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die?” Ezekiel 33:11. It is Satan’s special device to lead man into sin and then leave him there, helpless and hopeless, fearing to seek for pardon. But God invites, “Let him take hold of My strength, that he may make peace with Me; and he shall make peace with Me.” Isaiah 27:5. In Christ every provision has been made, every encouragement offered. 

The sufferings of the Redeemer, in His life and in His death, make it possible for man to return to his loyalty, and become refined and elevated. As his substitute and surety, Christ elevates man, and brings his mind into sympathy with the divine mind. Through faith, (that faith that works by love and purifies the soul from all moral defilement), we may overcome every evil trait of character. By accepting the provision made for us, we may represent the character of Christ. Thus we are identified with the Son of God, being one with Him as He is one with His Father. So we may overcome the enemy who would lead us away from our loyalty. We may become more than conquerors through Him that loved us.

It is not necessary that anyone should yield to the temptations of Satan and thus violate his conscience and grieve the Holy Spirit. Every provision has been made in the word of God whereby all may have divine help in their endeavors to overcome. If they keep Jesus before them they will become changed into His image. All who by faith have Christ abiding in them carry a power into their labor which makes them successful. They will be constantly growing more and more efficient in their work, and the blessing of God, shown in the prosperity of the work, will testify that they are indeed laborers together with Christ. But however much one may advance in spiritual life, he will never come to a point where he will not need diligently to search the Scriptures; for therein are found the evidences of our faith. All points of doctrine, even though they have been accepted as truth, should be brought to the law and to the testimony; if they cannot stand this test, “there is no light in them.”

True Faith, Not Feeling

     “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith.” Some conscientious souls on reading this immediately begin to criticize their every feeling and emotion. But this is not correct self - examination. It is not the petty feelings and emotions that are to be examined. The life, the character, is to be measured by the only standard of character, God's holy law. The fruit testifies to the character of the tree. Our works, not our feelings, bear witness of us.

     The feelings, whether encouraging or discouraging should not be made the test of the spiritual condition. By God's Word we are to determine our true standing before him. Many are bewildered on this point. When they are happy and joyous, they think that they are accepted by God. When a change comes, and they feel depressed, they think that God has forsaken them.

     God does not look with favor upon those self - confident ones who loudly exclaim, “I am sanctified, I am holy, I am sinless.” These are Pharisees who have no foundation for their assertion. Those who, because of their sense of utter unworthiness, dare scarcely lift up their eyes to heaven, are nearer to God than those who claim so much piety. They are represented by the publican, who, with his head on his breast, prayed, “God be merciful to me a sinner,” and went to his house justified, rather than the self - righteous Pharisee.

     But God does not desire us to go through life with a distrust of him. We owe our Heavenly Father a more generous view of his goodness than is accorded to him by our manifest distrust of his love. We have an evidence of his love - an evidence which amazes angels and is far beyond the comprehension of the wisest of human beings. “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” While we were yet sinners, God gave his Son to die for us. Can we doubt his goodness?

     Behold Christ. Dwell upon his love and mercy. This will fill the soul with abhorrence for all that is sinful, and will inspire it with an intense desire for the righteousness of Christ. The more clearly we see the Saviour, the more clearly shall we discern our defects of character. Confess your sins to Christ, and with true contrition of soul co - operate with him by putting these sins away. Believe that they are pardoned. The promise is positive, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Be assured that the Word of God will not fail. He who has promised is faithful. It is as much your duty to believe that God will fulfil his word, and forgive you, as it is to confess your sins.

     Exercise faith in God. How many there are who go through life under a cloud of condemnation! They do not believe God's Word. They have no faith that he will do as he has said. Many who long to see others resting in the pardoning love of Christ do not rest in it themselves. But how can they possibly lead others to show simple, child - like faith in the Heavenly Father when they measure his love by their feelings?

     Let us trust God's Word implicitly, remembering that we are his sons and daughters. Let us train ourselves to believe his Word. We hurt the heart of Christ by doubting, when he has given us such evidences of his love. He laid down his life to save us. He says to us: “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy - laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

     Do you believe that he will do as he has said? Then, after you have complied with the conditions, carry no longer the burden of your sin. Let it roll upon the Saviour. Trust yourself with him. Has he not promised to give you rest? But to many he is obliged to say, sorrowfully, “Ye will not come unto me, that ye might have life.” Many manufacture for themselves burdens which are grievous to bear.
     Look steadfastly to Jesus. Behold him, full of grace and truth. He will make his goodness pass before you, while he hides you in the cleft of the rock. You will be enabled to endure the seeing of him who is invisible, and by beholding you will be transformed. Faith is not feeling. Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. There is a form of religion which is nothing more than selfishness. It takes pleasure in worldly enjoyment. It is satisfied with contemplating the religion of Christ, and knows nothing of its saving power. Those who possess this religion regard sin lightly because they do not know Jesus. While in this condition they estimate duty very lightly. But a faithful performance of duty goes hand in hand with a right estimate of the character of God.

     There is earnest work to do for the Master. Christ came to preach the gospel to the poor, and he sent his disciples forth to do the same work he came to do. So he sends forth his workers today. Sheaves are to be gathered for him from the highways and hedges. The tremendous issues of eternity demand of us something besides an imaginary religion, a religion of words and forms, where the truth is kept in the outer court, to be admired as we admire a beautiful flower; they demand something more than a religion of feeling, which distrusts God when trials and difficulties come. Holiness does not consist in profession, but in lifting the cross, doing the will of God. Saying, “Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? will not secure for us an entrance into the kingdom of heaven. “He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected."

Jesus Calls to Your Heart Through His Words of Life

     Jesus is inviting you to open the door of your hearts, and let Him in. What are you going to do? Will you search carefully your heart, and see what you indulge in and cherish, that displeases Jesus and keeps the door of your heart shut against the dear Saviour? Is pride, or love of the world, or selfishness in your heart shutting Jesus from you? If it is, keep Jesus out no longer. Turn these things out of your heart. Go alone and pray for grace, overcoming grace. Die to these sins, and make the happy exchange for Jesus, His presence, His love, His power. 

     Says Jesus, “If any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come in and sup with him and he with Me.” Have you heard the voice of Jesus? Have you responded to that voice? Has the cutting, saving message taken hold of the soul, and worked a reformation in the life? Or, have you suffered (allowed) this precious voice to be drowned by the confusion of the world? You can hear His voice if you will. You must first listen, then hear His voice, then empty the heart of besetting sins, that room may be made for Jesus, that He may come in and abide there. 

     If you will overcome your besetments, you must pray, and watch yourselves with jealous care. The grace of God is sufficient for you. It is sufficient for the weakest, and the strongest must depend upon the same grace, or perish. To obtain this grace, you must go to your closet (personal place of prayer) and there plead with God. “Create in me a clean heart O God, and renew a right spirit within me.” Be in earnest, be sincere. Fervent prayer availeth much. When you sincerely feel that without the help of God you will perish, then will He appear for you. Then, as you hunger and thirst for righteousness, Jesus will come in and sup with you, and you with Him. Often will your faith be tested, and be tried; but tire not. Be unwearied in your efforts. Trust God, and your heart will again be joyous with a sense of pardoned sin, and a holy confidence in your Redeemer. 

Fellowship With Jesus Christ

     "This then is the message which we have heard of Him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all.

     If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
     But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
     If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
     If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."  1 John 1:5-9. 

     We should not try to lessen our guilt by excusing sin.

     We must accept God's estimate of sin, and that is heavy indeed.

     Calvary alone can reveal the terrible enormity of sin. If we had to bear our own guilt, it would crush us.

     But the sinless One has taken our place; though undeserving, He has borne our iniquity.

     "If we confess our sins," God "is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:9.

     Glorious truth!--just to His own law, and yet the Justifier of all that believe in Jesus.

Importance of God's Word, the Bible

     We need Christ every moment. We need to look upon and study His character.

     What would Christ do, were He in my place? is to be our measurement of our duty.  (1 John 2:6)

     It is possible to "preach the Word" (2 Timothy 4:2) and walk directly contrary to its teaching, showing in the home life and in business life a "form of godliness" without the power.  (2 Timothy 3:5)

     Vague suppositions regarding Christ are not enough. We need an abiding Christ. We need to eat His word. He is the Bread of Life.

     The revealed Word of God is our photograph of Christ.

     The ways of the world (1 John 2:15-17) can only be expelled from the soul by filling the soul with Christ, who is the Word (John 1:1).

     Just as the life of the body is produced by the temporal food eaten, so the life of the soul is produced by the spiritual food eaten. He who would have spiritual life and vigor must eat the flesh and drink the blood of the Son of God.

     Christ declares, “I am the Bread of Life: he that cometh to Me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on Me shall never thirst.... Whoso eateth My flesh and drinketh My blood hath eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day; for My flesh is meat indeed and My blood is drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in Me and I in Him. As the living Father hath sent Me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me.”  John 6:35, 54-57.

The Nature of Man: What Happens After Death?

The Nature of Man

“To the Christian, death is but is sleep, a moment of silence and darkness.” The Desire of Ages, 787.

What Is Death?

• Psalm 13:3. The psalmist calls death a sleep.

• 1 Thessalonians 4:15. The dead are asleep. The Desire of Ages, 787.

• Matthew 27:52. They sleep in their graves.

• Acts 13:36. When David died he went to sleep.

• 1 Corinthians 15:51. Paul calls death a sleep.

• 1 Thessalonians 4:14. The righteous dead sleep in Jesus.

• 1 Kings 11:43. More than twenty-five times the expression, “Slept with his fathers,” is used when recording deaths of kings in the old Testament. We give one sample text.

• John 11:11-14. Jesus calls death a sleep.

• Hebrews 9:27. One death is appointed unto men.

• Genesis 2:17; 3:22-24; Romans 6:23. Death is the result of sin.

• John 8:44. Satan is the father of sin.

• Hebrews 2:14. He has the power of death.

• 2 Timothy 1:10. Christ abolished death. He changed death into a sleep.

• 1 Corinthians 15:22. This included all the dead.

• John 5:25-28. Christ has the power to awaken all from the sleep of death. The Desire of Ages, 320.

Are The Dead Conscious?

• Psalm 146:4. “His breath goeth forth; ... in that very day his thoughts perish.”

• Job 14:12, 21. No knowledge of what happens on earth after death. The Great Controversy, 549.

• Isaiah 38:10, 11. Do not see the Lord or men on the earth. The Great Controversy, 546.

• Ecclesiastes 9:5, 6. Do not know anything. The Desire of Ages, 557, 558.

• Psalm 115:17. Praise not the Lord.

• Psalm 6:5. No remembrance of God.

• Psalm 88:11, 12. Grave the land of forgetfulness.

• Job 14:12. Remain in the grave till the heavens are no more.

• Revelation 6:14-17. Heavens roll together when Christ returns to earth.

• Job 19:23-27. Job knew he would wake at that time.

• John 5:29. Two classes in the resurrection.

• 1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17. Righteous arise when Christ comes.

• Revelation 20:5. Wicked raised 1000 years later.

How Are The Dead Raised Up?

• 1 Corinthians 15:35. “With what body do they come?”

• 1 Corinthians 15:36-38. The same individual will come from the grave that went into the grave as truly as wheat comes from wheat sown in the earth.

• 1 Corinthians 15:44. “It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body.”

• 1 Corinthians 15:20. Christ was the first-fruits, or sample. Testimonies for the Church 9:286.

• 1 Thessalonians 4:14. Those that sleep in Jesus will be brought forth as He was.

• Luke 24:39-43. Christ arose with the same body that hung on the cross.

• Luke 24:30, 35. Recognized by His manner of breaking bread.

• John 20:15, 16. Mary knew her Lord by His voice.

• John 20:3-8. John recognized Christ by his orderly habits.

• John 20:26-28. Philip knew His by His personal appearance. As Jesus’ friends recognized Him, so we will recognize our friends.

• 1 Corinthians 15:51-54. Righteous dead raised immortal.

• Philippians 3:20, 21. Their bodies will be like Christ’s glorious body.

• Matthew 17:1, 2. Their faces will shine as the sun, and raiment be white as the light.

• Hosea 13:14. Christ has pledged to redeem them from death.

• Job 14:15. He will call, the saints will answer.

• Isaiah 26:19. Christ will call, “Awake and sing.”

• 1 Corinthians 15:54-57. The righteous spring forth with a song of victory. Testimonies for the Church 2:229.

Two Resurrections and the Second Death

• John 5:28, 29. Two resurrections: one to life, and the other to damnation. The Great Controversy, 544.

• Revelation 20:5. One thousand years between the two.

• Matthew 24:30, 31. When the righteous arise Christ gathers them.

• Revelation 20:5-9. When the wicked arise Satan gathers them. Christ’s Object Lessons, 270.

• Revelation 20:13. Gathered from land and sea.

• Revelation 20:6; 2:11. Righteous never die the second death.

• Revelation 20:14. Second death is the lake of fire.

• Revelation 20:15; Romans 6:23. All whose names are not in the book of life, suffer the second death.

Eternal Life, The Gift Of God

• 1 Timothy 6:15, 16. God only hath immortality.

• John 5:26. God gave Christ immortality.

• 1 John 5:11, 12. Eternal life given man through Christ. “He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son hath not life.”

• 1 John 3:15. No wicked person hath eternal life.

• 2 Timothy 1:10. Christ “brought life and immortality to light.”

• Job 4:17. Man is only mortal.

• Romans 2:6, 7. We are admonished to seek for immortality, eternal life. If we possessed it, we would not need to seek for it.

• 1 Corinthians 15:51-54. It will be given the righteous at Christ’s second coming.

Life Only Through Christ, As Taught By The Cities Of Refuge

• Numbers 35:11-14. The six cities of refuge were a constant reminder that eternal life was a gift and not an inherent human inheritance. Patriarchs and Prophets, 516.

• Deuteronomy 19:2, 3. The roads leading to the cities were to be kept in good repair that the one fleeing might not be hindered. Patriarchs and Prophets, 515.

• Numbers 35:15. The refuge was free to all; even the stranger and sojourner might flee thither. Patriarchs and Prophets, 515.

• Numbers 35:16-25. The regulations regarding these cities taught that there were degrees of crime. It was possible to go so far in sin that the sinner was delivered over to the avenger even at the gate of the city. Patriarchs and Prophets, 516.

• Hebrews 6:4-6; Matthew 12:31, 32. There is an unpardonable sin.

• Hebrews 12:16, 17. Illustrated in the case of Esau.

• Joshua 20:4. Confession was made at the gate before the one fleeing was received.

• 1 John 1:9. The sinner must confess.

• Numbers 35:26-29. Inside the city was life; outside the city was death. Patriarchs and Prophets, 517.

• Proverbs 18:10; Psalm 91:2. Christ is a refuge. Patriarchs and Prophets, 516, 517.

• 1 John 5:11, 12; John 15:4-7. Our safety is to abide in Christ.

• Numbers 35:26-28. If one presumptuously went outside the city, his life could be taken.

• Ezekiel 18:24-26. The one that turns from the refuge of Christ, dies the second death.

• Joshua 20:6; Numbers 35:25. There were two important events to which the dweller in the city looked forward,-the judgment and the death of the high priest. The judgment decided his destiny; the death of the high priest restored him to freedom of the land. The decision in the judgment decides our eternal destiny; and when our High Priest ceases to be high priest, our adversary, the devil, has no power to take our life, and we come into possession of our eternal inheritance.

The Great Adversary

“The true character of the usurper, and his real object, must be understood by all.”

• Ezekiel 28:15. Was perfect when created.

• Ezekiel 28:12. Full of wisdom, perfect in beauty. Patriarchs and Prophets, 35.

• Ezekiel 28:14. Covering cherub.

• Ezekiel 28:17. Proud of his beauty.

• Ezekiel 28:17. Pride ruined his wisdom.

• Isaiah 14:13. Coveted higher position. Patriarchs and Prophets, 36.

• Isaiah 14:14. Coveted the throne of God.

• Revelation 12:7. Other angels affected. Patriarchs and Prophets, 37, 39, Testimonies for the Church 3:328.

• Revelation 12:7. Christ and loyal angels fought against Satan and his angels.

• Revelation 12:8. Satan was defeated.

• Isaiah 14:12. Satan cast out of heaven. The Desire of Ages, 493.

• Revelation 12:9. His angels cast out with him. Patriarchs and Prophets, 41.

• Revelation 12:9. Cast to this earth.

• Genesis 3:1-6. He caused our first parents to sin. Patriarchs and Prophets, 53-59.

• Romans 6:16. Gained Adam’s dominion.

• Ephesians 2:2. Prince of the power of the air.

• John 14:30. The Saviour called him the prince of this world. The Desire of Ages, 123, 679.

Second Fall of Satan

• 1 Kings 22:19-22. Although Satan and his angels had been cast from heaven, they still could appear in the counsels of the Lord at the gate of heaven.

• Job 1:6. Satan met with the sons of God.

• Luke 3:38. Adam as the prince of this earth was called a “son of God.”

• 2 Peter 2:19. Satan usurped Adam’s position.

• Job 1:7. He represented the earth in the council.

• Job 1:9-11. Accused God of being arbitrary.

• Job 1:12-22. When given power only destroyed.

• John 14:30. Satan has no part in Christ, who was a sinless son of Adam.

• John 12:31-33. Christ’s death judged Satan. The Desire of Ages, 490.

• John 12:31. Christ’s death cast Satan out of his place.

• Luke 10:18. He fell as lightening from heaven.

• Revelation 12:10. A shout rang through heaven when the accuser was cast out.

• 2 Peter 2:19; Hebrews 2:14. Christ overcame Satan, and is now the representative of this world.

• Hebrews 2:17. Instead of the accuser at the gate of heaven, we have a merciful High Priest.

• Hebrews 4:14-16. One who loves to be merciful to us.

Third Fall of Satan

• Revelation 20:1-3. It does not take Christ or a host of angels to overcome Satan; one angel binds him.

• Revelation 20:3. He is confined to his own territory.

• Jeremiah 4:23-26; Isaiah 24:19-21. Sin has made the earth a dark abyss.

• 1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17. Righteous in heaven.

• Jeremiah 25:31-33. Wicked all dead.

• Revelation 20:3. Satan is alone with the evil angels for 1000 years. He is bound by circumstances; the righteous are in heaven, the wicked dead, there is no one for him to tempt.

• Revelation 20:5. The wicked live again at the end of 1000 years.

• Revelation 20:7. This gives Satan work, and he is said to be “loosed.”

• Revelation 20:8. Deceives the wicked.

• Revelation 20:9. As they gather for battle all are destroyed.

• Hebrews 2:14. Christ died to destroy Satan.

• Revelation 20:10. As long as Satan lives in the fire he suffers torment, but as sure as Christ died, Satan will die when he has suffered the penalty for sin.

• Ezekiel 28:18, 19. Satan becomes ashes on the earth in the sight of the righteous. The Desire of Ages, 490.

• Malachi 4:1-3. Ashes on the new earth is all that remains of Satan and sinners.

Ancient Spiritualism

• Exodus 7:11-13. Sorcerers (spiritualist mediums) influenced Pharaoh.

• Leviticus 19:31; 20:6, 27; Exodus 22:18; Deuteronomy 18:10-12. Spiritualist mediums, anciently called witches and wizards, were an abomination. The Great Controversy, 556.

• 2 Kings 1:1-4. Consulted in case of sickness. Testimonies for the Church 5:191-199.

• 1 Samuel 28:8, 11. Familiar spirits profess to be spirits of dead people.

• 1 Chronicles 10:13. Saul’s crowning sin was consulting familiar spirits.

• 2 Chronicles 33:1-6. Manasseh dealt with familiar spirits.

• 2 Kings 17:17, 18. Israel went into captivity because they “used divinations and enchantments.”

• Deuteronomy 18:9-14; 2 Kings 17:15-18. The heathen nations were spiritualists; they dealt with familiar spirits.

• 2 Kings 17:16, 17. Spiritualism always connected with Baal-or sun-worship.

• Deuteronomy 32:17; Psalm 106:37; Leviticus 17:7. The heathen Baal-worship was devil-worship. This was the principal adversary against the cause of God until about the sixth century A.D.

• Genesis 3:1-6. The first spiritualist medium was the serpent. The devil spoke directly through the serpent.

• Isaiah 8:19, 20. When asked to consult with familiar spirits, turn to the Bible (the law and the testimony) instead of spiritualism.

Modern Spiritualism

• Revelation 16:13-15. Unclean spirits will speak through great powers of earth in the last days.

• Revelation 13:1-14. As the prophetic period of 1260 years was closing, a nation was seen arising. The United States arose at that time. Out of this nation a miracle-working power was to arise. About 1848 modern spiritualism began to attract attention through the Fox sisters of New York.

• Acts 8:9; 13:6-10; Revelation 9:20, 21. Sorcery was an evil in New Testament times.

• Revelation 18:2. Modern Babylon becomes “the hold of every foul spirit.”

• 1 Corinthians 10:20. Gentiles worshiped devils.

• Job 14:14, 20, 21; 7:8-10. The dead do not know what takes place after their death.

• Psalm 146:3, 4. Their power to think ceases.

• Ecclesiastes 9:5, 6. The dead do not know anything; hence, a spirit purporting to be a spirit of any dead person, must be a wicked spirit trying to deceive.

• Revelation 16:14; 13:14. The devil can work miracles. The Great Controversy, 553, 554.

• 2 Corinthians 11:13-15. The devil can appear as an angel of light; hence, can easily personate the dead, or be a “spirit guide”. The Great Controversy, 552.

• Revelation 16:13-15. Spiritualism will be a bond uniting different earthly powers together for the “battle of that great day of God Almighty.” Testimonies for the Church 5:451.

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